


An Inconvenient Attachment

by loOkMA-iTyPeLiKeDiS (loOkMA_iTyPeLiKeDiS)



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: (or are they...), Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Hanging Out, Modern AU, Valentine's Day, marcos is a little shit, rayla is a total bro, unrequited feelings, word vomit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:22:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29449992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loOkMA_iTyPeLiKeDiS/pseuds/loOkMA-iTyPeLiKeDiS
Summary: She was a sarcastic little elf demon, but spending a bit of Valentine’s Day with her didn’t sound so bad.
Relationships: Rayla & Soren (The Dragon Prince), Rayla/Soren (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 11





	An Inconvenient Attachment

**Author's Note:**

> crack pairings are my weakness, sword fights are another, and goofball/sassy pairings are yet another. shipping sorayla was inevitable i guess.
> 
> still on s2, but wrote some quick word vomit today bc why not! happy valentine's day!

“Hey, puck head!” Rayla shouted from the doorway, announcing her presence as the door crashed into the foyer wall. Soren damn near jumped a foot in the air, and Marcos eyed him with a smirk. “Where the hell are you hiding?”

He’d expected her presence after the fifty bajillion texts she’d left him that he’d ignored, but not this soon.

“Girlfriend’s here, Soren.” Marcos snickered, hand ruffling Soren’s hair.

“Not my girlfriend,” he shoved Marcos’s hand off his (perfectly coiffed!) hair before sighing as a livid Rayla rounded the corner into the living room of his dorm suite. “You learned puck head once and never stopped using it since. Get a new phrase.”

“Deal with it. You’re taking me out for a beer. _Now_ ,” Rayla said without prelude, standing right in front of the TV with hands on her hips. “Non-negotiable.”

“She’s got your balls in a vice like a girlfriend…” Marcos took one look at her and winced, wishing Soren good luck as he fucked off to their kitchenette.

“I have a game tomorrow. And I’m nursing a damn near concussion from practice today. Leave me be, dammit.”

It didn’t stop him from subtly eyeing her, appreciative of her slender figure and long legs. She’d ventured from her usual torn jeans and hoodies and was pretty dolled up today in a short red dress, heeled boots and a leather jacket. Her hair and makeup were done up too and she smelled great. She looked like she was all dressed up for a hot date, and for a brief moment, he felt envy for the guy who’d managed to snag Rayla for a Valentine’s date.

“Not my fault you decided to be a collegiate puck head. Get up.”

“Jesus fuck. Go away, Rayla.” Soren groaned, sinking further in the couch and trying to lean over to the side to catch the hockey game behind her. She shifted over with a raised brow to block his view, and he sighed, dropping his head back against the back of the couch. Somewhere in the kitchen, Marcos was laughing at his plight. “I can’t even understand half the shit you say when you’re drunk.”

“It’s not like you had any plans anyway. Claudia told me about your whole no hookups on Valentine’s Day rule. So you’re free.”

“That doesn’t mean I want to spend my evening with _you_. It’s a day of self-love.” He tilted his head down to give her a lazy glower. “Hanging out with you is the antithesis to self-love, and for your information, I _do_ have plans.”

“Can you even spell antithesis?” she drawled with a smug look on her face.

“He has no plans, Ray,” Marcos shouted from around the mouthful of the sandwich he was chowing down on. “Just gonna spend it masturbating to his magazines.”

She made a face of utter disgust, and Soren lifted his hand and lazily flipped off his roommate.

“Get bent, Marcos.”

“Executive decision made. You’re taking me out. And you don’t have the balls to say no to me either, you lily-livered Canadian, so don’t even try.”

“How the hell is Callum friends with you? You’re an absolute nightmare elf-demon, and I can’t stand you.”

She smirked triumphantly. “Feelings mutual, now let’s go.”

And then she turned off his TV, stomped over to him, and yanked him up from his comfortable nest on the couch like the damn aggressive evil elf she was.

“Hope you get your balls back, Soren.” Marcos cackled from the kitchen, wiggling his fingers at him knowingly in farewell as he was dragged out of their place.

But even Soren couldn’t stop Rayla when she was on a mission, and before he knew it, she’d gotten a cab and they were hurtling downtown to her bar of choice, Rayla sulking the whole way.

…

He was both lucky and unlucky that they went to school in a super collegiate sports town. It meant there were a lot of awesome bars to choose from, but because no one carded or cared if people were drinking even if they weren’t legal, Rayla tended to drag him to whatever place she wanted, and she always chose the ones playing soccer—sorry, _football_ —with the most abysmal music.

And whenever he mentioned how shitty the music was, she _always_ countered with a tart ‘can you even _spell_ abysmal?’.

(It was either an s or a z, he could never remember. Sue him).

“I could be watching hockey right now instead of watching you get pissed…” Soren muttered crossly, watching her warily as the bartender brought her another pilsner.

Rayla disregarded his gripe, drinking from her glass and throwing up her hand in frustration when a player on the screen missed a goal. “Tough.”

“Why don’t we just skip to the part where you rant about what’s pissing you off so I can get back to my plans? The game was getting good too.”

“What is with your obsession with hockey? I just don’t see the point of a game where you lose teeth and spend most of the game brawling.”

“I haven’t lost teeth.” He bared his teeth for good measure. “I keep these pearly whites in top condition.”

“Only a matter of time…”

“The brawls are what make it so fun! C’mon. You’re Scottish; how can you not enjoy a good old brawl?”

“Piss off, you cunt.” She gave him a dry look, completely unamused. “You and your teammates are Neanderthals. Violent barbarism at its finest.”

“You’re calling _me_ a Neanderthal? I saw you keg standing at that frat party last week. I also watched you hurl chunks an hour later and then devour five chili dogs! You’re a complete animal.”

And it was totally hot.

She rotated in her swivel chair to hide her face, but he definitely caught how she tried to hide the fact that she was smiling. He hummed behind the rim of his own beer mug, a small smirk on his lips as he patted himself on the back. It was the first real smile she’d shown since she’d barged into his place.

Success.

“You almost took your top off at a bar party.”

“I was drunk.”

“Don’t lie. You wanted to do it. Hell, I’m convinced you would have done it even if you weren’t drunk.”

This time she laughed.

Double success.

Soren nudged her with his elbow. “C’mon. Truce. Tell me what got you in this mood. Maybe I can help.”

“It’s Callum. I just… don’t get why Callum caters to Claudia all the time. We had a whole evening planned…” she sulked, dropping her chin onto the bar counter, a faint blush painting her cheeks pink. “We were supposed to go to dinner and then he promised he’d take me hiking up the Summit so I could see the city with the moon’s backdrop. We had a whole adventure planned. I was really looking forward to some alone time with him, except he cancelled last minute to help Claudia rearrange inventory in your dad’s bookstore. And geez, I get that your goth sister is hot, but I’m his best friend, aren’t I? Why does he keep doing this shit to me?”

Soren sighed, setting his mug down and scratching a hand through his hair. It was always the same old same old. Callum pining after Claudia, Rayla pining after Callum… and Soren pining after Rayla. And unfortunately, always being dragged around on her whim and fancy when she needed to blow off steam.

Honestly, it was kind of weird that she always chose him to rant to considering up until a few months ago, they barely tolerated each other, often getting into verbal fights over the stupidest things until they got all their friends kicked out of bars and places. She thought he was a meathead dumbass, and he’d seen her as a snarky, shrill shrew.

He couldn’t pinpoint the moment that contentious relationship had changed, but one day she started confiding in him how much she missed being home in Scotland, he told her how much he missed Canada, and that conversation turned into a chat about the expectations their fathers had for them and how they never quite seemed to meet them. For all their differences, they both understood very well feeling like they’d disappointed Viren and Runaan with their choices, even if it was never outright said. Ever since then, whenever she needed to rant, she came to him.

Not that he minded, to be honest.

As annoying as hell as she was with her sarcasm and her constant need to combat everything he said, he enjoyed her company. She was cool, didn’t sweat the small stuff, considered a good hangout watching a game with beer, and she had a temper far worse than some of the guys on his hockey team.

He was a simple guy, and that about did it for him.

Her hatred of hockey notwithstanding, she was kind of his ideal girl. Sucked that she had a mondo crush on Callum, but what could Soren do? With how close Rayla was to Callum, he was certain they’d start dating at some point.

“You gotta understand. Our families are close. Clauds and Cal have known each other for years, so they’ll always have a connection. That’s not what you’re upset about anyway,” Soren said, knowing he was right when Rayla slumped deeper on the counter. “You’re upset because it’s Valentine’s Day and you thought Callum asked you on a date.”

“Well, he did! He said _Friday_ specifically.”

“To be fair, Friday is also the last weekday and a great partying day.” Soren snorted. “Knowing Callum, I doubt he even realised it was Valentine’s Day. Damn, and you even got all dressed up for today. Is that a new perfume?”

“Yes! I actually spent money buying stuff for today, and he cancelled on me.” Rayla plonked her forehead on the counter with a groan. “Why is Callum so damn oblivious…?”

“Pot, kettle…” Soren muttered under his breath and then pretended he hadn’t said anything when Rayla eyed him questioningly. “Were you seriously going to go hiking in _heels_ though?”

“I obviously would’ve brought a change of clothes,” she responded distractedly, no venom in her tone.

He could tell her heart wasn’t in it to parry insults today. She was usually more sarcastic and _creative_ , and as nice as it was for his dignity, he much preferred her spirited insults to this mopey version.

And they were hanging out on _Valentine’s Day_ ; no way was he going to spend the whole evening with the girl of his dreams sitting in a boring ass bar.

Soren pulled out a handful of bills from his jeans and dropped them on the counter to tip the bartender before letting her know he wanted to settle the tab and handing her his card.

“Hey, I wasn’t done wallowing! And I can pay for myself, you know?”

“Yeah, no. I’m not wasting a Friday here.” Soren signed the receipt and took his credit card back when the bartender slid it over to him. “We’re going to the rink.”

He tugged Rayla off her chair before she could object again and grabbed her hand to lead her out. From the pinched look on her face, she was none-too-pleased, but she followed him anyway.

“Why ice skating?”

“You got all dressed up, so I’m taking you out on a substitute V Day date. They don’t clean the ice until late, so there’s time to skate,” he said staunchly, flagging a cabbie. “Best I can think of cuz I don’t think there’s a single place in the city that hasn’t been booked to the brim. And the sooner you stop complaining, the sooner I can get some peace and quiet and you finally leave me the hell alone.”

She let out a short bark of laughter. “Fat chance. Your haircut makes you look like a douchebag, and you can’t grow a beard for shit; I’m never leaving you alone.”

“Hey, you elf demon!” He ran his fingers over his facial hair in affront as they climbed in the cab. “There’s nothing wrong with my beard. It’s a sexy beard!”

“Raggedy…”

“You take that back!”

…

Soren knew some of the guys liked to practice into the night sometimes, but he was glad to see that the rink was empty when they snuck in through the locker room.

He’d let Rayla borrow a pair of rental skates from the storage supply closet, and they’d strapped on their skates and gotten on the ice. Though the rink hadn’t been cleaned yet, it wasn’t in bad shape from his earlier practice.

They ending up racing a couple times, forwards and backwards, played tag like some little kids, and then tried to see if they could do tricks like figure skaters. He loved that he could lift her with ease and that Rayla had absolutely no qualms trusting him to actually keep her up.

(He liked to imagine she was impressed with his muscles and strength).

Soren could visibly see her mood shift and lift while they skated. She was giggling and grinning, and while she was skating backwards and spinning in circles, Soren leaned against the wall, genuinely happy to see her having a good time. And she was super cute twirling around on the ice in her tiny dress.

She softened up quite a bit during their little “date” though, freely giving him exhilarating smiles and taking his hand whenever she wanted to try something with the both of them. It was one of the most unconventional Valentine’s Day dates he’d ever had, but he was having a pretty great time. And from the way Rayla howled with laughter when he tripped backwards and landed on his ass, he knew she was having a pretty good time too.

The fun was cut short though when the guy who drove the Zamboni caught them and chased them out in anger.

Going to the rink turned out to be a good and bad idea, though he was undecided on which.

Especially since Rayla was currently barking at him for making her trip and slide across the ice and dirtying her dress as they’d scrambled to leave. Which he was sure she wasn’t going to ever shut up about.

(And which he was sort of fine with considering he’d gotten a glimpse of her panties and was on cloud nine).

…

“Picked up some pizza,” Soren called out as he kicked his suite’s door shut with his foot since both hands were full.

“You’ll be picking up my dry-cleaning bill too, since you ruined my dress and all…” she called back.

She’d opted for a shower while he’d gone, but when he stopped next to the couch and tossed the box on the table, he was more than a little surprised to see her lounging on the couch with a beer and wearing one of his t-shirts. He figured she’d probably end up borrowing something since she didn’t have a change of clothes right now, but he hadn’t anticipated how much he’d like the look.

He’d made up his mind. Going skating was a good idea, holy hell.

“Oh thank fuck. _Food_.” She popped open the box and pulled a slice, taking a bite out of it with a moan. He tried not to stare at the way his t-shirt was riding up her legs when she sat back and crossed them. “I'm starving.”

Soren went to the fridge to grab his own bottle. “Also got you this.”

He moved back to the couch and handed her off the grocery bag in his hand when he sat down. Rayla opened the bag, and her brows lifted as she stared at the chocolate box and small teddy bear.

“What is this?”

“I told you it was a substitute V Day date, so here. Happy Valentine’s Day, or whatever. Gotta see it through to the end.”

“Okay, you lose some points because I don’t really like chocolate…” she muttered, though she had a bright smile on her face as she picked up the stuffed teddy and the box of chocolates. “But you get an overall passing grade for not being annoying as hell and flirting with the bartender making eyes at you tonight. And this bear is really cute.”

Soren kicked his feet on the table with a yawn. “What bartender? There’s only you.”

Wasn’t really a lie. He hadn’t even noticed the bartender.

“You know? You may be lacking in intellect,” she laughed when he made a face at her, “but tonight was pretty fun. Thanks for wanting to hang out with me. I wish Callum would have wanted to hang out too…”

And just when he was hoping she’d forgotten all about that.

“Look, Rayla.” Soren rolled his eyes and leaned back against the cushions, hands resting behind his head as he watched the soccer players on the screen. “One day doesn’t change the fact that he loves hanging out with you. You’re his best friend, plus who wouldn’t? You’re a total bro. You chug beer and burp in people’s faces, you curse like a sailor, you get in fights during our school’s football games, and you’re stunning. I think you’re the total package. Well, you would be if you liked hockey, but any guy would be lucky to have you. Yeah, you’re annoying as shit, but hell, _I_ love spending time with you, and that’s saying something because you’re easily the worst person I know.”

He turned his head to her, half expecting her to snark him to oblivion for the jabs he’d tossed in there, but she was staring down at the bear, her lower lip caught between her teeth and cheeks a rosy colour.

“What?”

“…You just said you think I’m the total package,” she said quietly, looking up at him with a small smile, and he felt his own cheeks start to rouge a bit when he realised what he’d said. “That’s some pretty high praise for someone you think is the worst.”

“Umm… sure, whatever, I guess.” He took a sip from his bottle to distract himself from the contemplative look on her face. “But you’re still a platinum-haired she-devil. An elf demon.”

“You already used that one today.” She chuckled and then took a bite of her slice as she glanced at the game on the TV. “I guess you’re not so bad yourself, for a hockey-obsessed nut. And the beard’s okay. And a little sexy.”

“Thank you, because that slander to my beard was completely uncalled for and disrespectful. But I’ll accept your apology if you admit you’re into me~”

“What apology? I didn’t offer you one, goofball.” She snickered before her laughter petered away and she brought her gaze back to his, a grateful look on her face. “I know I don’t always say it, but seriously. Thanks for always taking my mind off things, Soren. It’s why I come to you.”

“Just hit me up. I’ll be there.”

“Thanks.”

“Anytime…”

They stared at each other, game forgotten in the background as their smiles slowly faded. She blinked at him, a soft warmth in her gaze. A sudden, inexplicable urge to kiss her washed over him and he leaned closer without thinking, gaze dropping to her mouth for a moment. Rayla leaned a bit closer too, and when their eyes met again, he was pretty sure she wanted him to kiss her too.

And her phone’s muffled ringer went off.

They broke away pretty quickly as she scrambled to pull her phone from the couch cushions.

“Oh, it’s Callum.” She picked up, confused at first as she listened to him, though her expression gradually brightened. “Oh, really? Well, that’s awesome… Yeah, no big deal… Okay, sure! …Yeah, I’ll see you soon!”

“Cal restarted your plans?” Soren asked when she hung up.

“Yeah. Still wants to go hiking. Said we could have a picnic at the Summit instead. Said he bought me a secret present for having to postpone without warning.”

“You’ll get attacked by bears if you bring food up there.”

“Yeah. I don’t think it’s that great an idea either, but you know Callum. Adventurous as always.” Rayla snorted. “I know we were kind of hanging out, but do you mind if I…?”

“Uh, no, yeah. Shouldn’t keep him waiting then,” Soren said, standing to toss the empty bottles on the table and hide his disappointment. “You can hang on to that shirt for the time being. Just get it back to me when you’ve got time.”

“Okay thanks.” She hesitated for a bit as she stood up. “We should… do this again sometime. Hang out, I mean. Not for a ranting session.”

“Sure. I have a game tomorrow; you should come out,” he said, crushing the trash further down and then washing his hands. “We always celebrate at Benny’s afterward. You can get raging drunk~”

She wrinkled her nose. “Hockey game sounds horrible, but I’ll go for the afterparty.”

“One day I’ll make you fall in love with hockey, and you are totally going to be more obsessed than I am.”

“Doubt it.” She rolled her eyes good-naturedly as she headed to the kitchen to toss her grease-covered napkin and crust in the trash. “Not a puck head moron like you.”

“Oh, you will be. Trust and believe,” he said as he wiped his hands on the sides of his pants, making sure it sounded every bit the threat he meant it to be. Then he turned and smiled. “Anyway, have fun on your date.”

Rayla nodded slowly, standing there for a moment, a pensive look marring her face for a couple seconds like she wasn’t sure what to do. He was about to ask her what was up when she took two sure steps forward, grasped his shirt’s collar, rose to her toes, and pressed her lips to his. Soren was a little confused when she pulled back, but a slow smile crawled on his face before he could stop it.

“…Gotta end a Valentine’s Day date right,” she muttered, looking away for a second and failing to hide her flush. “Okay?”

He smirked. “That’s a lot more G-rated of an ending than I would prefer for a V Day date.”

“Pig.” She let go of his collar and shoved him with a laugh. “See you around.”

He watched her pull on her boots and grab her bag of clothes and leave, though he waved back when she turned and made the bear wave at him before she left his place. Soren plopped back on the couch and grabbed a slice of pizza, boredom creeping up now that she was gone, though he changed the channel back to his preferred hockey. The game was almost over too.

Soren had been having a pretty good time with Rayla. Spending the rest of the evening playing drinking games with her would have been awesome. Maybe heading to the roof to stare at the moon like she liked, though he didn’t get why. And if the night had gone well, maybe he would have made his move and kissed her for real.

(Or maybe not, because she had a mean right hook).

Really, he wasn’t sure why he went to all the trouble for a girl who had a crush on another guy, but he couldn’t deny getting a kiss from Rayla out of it was worth it.

“You’ve got it bad, man…” Soren muttered, chuckling to himself.

Marcos stepped out into the living room, dressed up and all set for his own date.

“Damn, dude. You couldn’t even seal the deal with her after you willingly gave her your balls? I owe Corvus fifty bucks now because of you. Guess you’re really gonna need those magazines tonight, huh?”

“That’s it. I’m kicking your fucking ass.”

Soren vaulted over the couch, grabbed his stick, and Marcos fled, hollering.


End file.
